Independent Review and Support Committee

Prof. Dr.
H. Handwerker

Prof. Dr. Dr.
T. Luger

Professor Thomas Luger obtained his MD from Vienna University, where he was both a resident and assistant professor of dermatology. He is currently the director and chairman of the Department of Dermatology as well as the director of the Institute for Cell Biology and Immunobiology of the Skin at Münster University. His clinical interest is focused on allergic inflammation and autoimmune diseases of the skin, and his main areas of research are the role of cytokines and neuropeptides in the regulation of the function of dendritic cells on immune tolerance.

Prof. Dr.
M. Metz

Martin Metz is Professor of Dermatology at the Department of Dermatology and Allergy, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany. He is also the executive medical director of the Department of Dermatology and Allergy and head of the pruritus clinics. His main scientific areas of interest are mast cell biology, neuroimmunology, inflammation and innate immunity, the major clinical focus is on pruritus and mast cell mediated diseases.

Prof. Dr.
A. Evers

Prof. Dr. Andrea W.W. Evers is professor of Health Psychology and chair of the Health-Medical-and-Neuropsychology-Unit at Leiden University, the Netherlands. After her PhD (cum laude), Andrea Evers obtained several personal grants and awards for excellent researchers (e.g. NWO-Veni, NWO-Vidi, NWO Vici, ERC Consolidator Grant) for her innovative, interdisciplinary and translational research on psychoneurobiological mechanisms and treatments for health and disease. In addition to her broad clinical experience as a registered clinical psychologist, she uniquely combines fundamental and applied science in her translational research, by focusing both on basic research on psychoneurobiology (e.g. placebo mechanisms) and translational research on screening and innovative interventions for somatic conditions (e.g. e-health tools), particularly in the area of itch and pain. In 2019, she was elected as a member of the Dutch Royal Academy of Science and Arts (KNAW) and received the Stevin Award, the highest award in the Netherlands for scientific research with societal impact. She published more than 200 international papers or chapters in her research field.

Prof. Dr.
S. Schneider